Chapter 373 The Sky Is Falling

Qinzhou.

Government office.

The grievance drum at the gate of the government office was beaten, making a dull sound, which alarmed all the officials in the government office, and there was a commotion in every government office.

"What's going on?"

"Who's drumming outside?"

"Zhou Facao, hurry up and take a look, don't let him knock again!"

"Damn it, is the government officer at the door lazy again? Why didn't you stop him?"

…

Although the drum of grievance is used to redress the grievances of the people, its more important role is to make the people and the court believe that the drum of grievance is used to redress the grievances of the people. Whoever has the heart of a bear and the courage of a leopard would dare to knock on that thing.

How many times are the grievance drum beaten every year, but it is counted in the performance evaluation of local officials. The more times the drum is beaten, it means that there are more unjust cases in the jurisdiction, which will affect their assessment and evaluation. If someone comes to redress grievances every day, then it is okay.

The government officials standing guard at the gate of the government office have an important duty, which is to stop the people from beating the drum of grievances. But I don’t know what happened today. When a young man beat the drum, the two government officials just stood there and watched. Standing and making no move.

The first time Fa Cao Zhou Ming heard the sound of the drum, he immediately ran outside the Yamen, held the young man's hand, and said quickly: "Stop knocking, stop knocking!"

The young man put down the drumstick, and Zhou Ming immediately reached out to grab it, frowned at him, and asked, "Who are you and why are you playing the drum?"

The young man looked Zhou Ming up and down and asked, "Who is this sir..."

Zhou Mingdao: "I am the Qinzhou Dharma Cao. If you have anything, you can tell me."

"It turns out to be Mr. Fa Cao." The young man bowed his hand to him, and then asked: "I heard that the government arrested several girls who performed on the streets and banned them from performing on the streets in the future. I would like to ask, why did the government do this? , which law is it based on?”

The responsibilities of a state magistrate are to hear cases in the state, arrest theft, etc. It is similar to a county lieutenant, but has broader powers than a county lieutenant. A state generally contains several to a dozen counties, and all the judicial responsibilities of these counties are Returned to Cao Tong.

For such a big judicial official, it should be very convenient and simple to become a legalist, but there is not even a trace of legalism in this legal official.

At this moment, many people had gathered outside the government office.

Hearing what the young man said, everyone looked at him with admiration.

This young man really dares to ask!

Do the government’s affairs need to be explained to the people?

Fa Cao Zhou Ming also didn't expect that the young man was playing the drum to ask about this matter.

There are no laws that need to be followed in this kind of thing.

Isn't it just a casual order from Master Don Jia?

But of course he couldn't say that in front of so many people. He cleared his throat and said: "There are state laws and family rules. Those women were naked on the street and immoral. The government detained them in accordance with relevant laws." Three days as punishment, reasonable and compliant..."

The young man said: "But I heard from many people that they were not naked and that they were arrested by the government without any basis."

Zhou Ming immediately looked at the people behind him and asked with a stern face: "Who said that? Stand up!"

When the people on the street heard this, they took two steps back.

Zhou Mingxiao looked at the young man and said: "Look, no one said anything... our government office must do things fairly and justly. You can't just listen to someone's words and then question the government office's fairness. "

Unexpectedly, after the young man heard this, although he did not continue to ask about the busking girls, he changed his tone and said, "I just passed by a brothel. Those brothel girls exposed their breasts in the street and forcibly solicited customers. What's more, Why doesn't the government care if it violates morals?"

Zhou Ming's lips moved. Even though he was good at using official accents, he didn't know how to answer.

That brothel is owned by Mr. Biejia's brother-in-law. He exposes his breasts in order to better attract customers. They often go there to have fun for free after they are out of office. Why should we care about them?

His face darkened and his patience was exhausted. He looked up and down at the young man in front of him and asked, "Who are you and where are you from? Take it out and show me Lu Yin!"

For ordinary people, a road guide is equivalent to an ID card, which contains their place of origin and address.

Unlike Lu Yin, Li Nuo couldn't hide his identity as long as he showed it.

In order to facilitate things, before leaving Chang'an, Li Nuo re-issued a road guide for himself.

There is no information about his official position or family background on the road guide, and Li Nuo's birthplace is not written as Chang'an, but as a remote prefecture and county.

He took out the road guide from his arms and handed it to the Dharma Cao.

After Zhou Ming took it, he glanced at Li Nuo again, snorted coldly, and said: "You look familiar, and I now have reasonable suspicion that you are an imperial criminal wanted by the court. Come and give him to me." Take it and take him to prison first, I want to interrogate him properly..."

Li Nuo looked at this man and said, "Sir, this is not okay. According to the laws of Daxia, your suspicion cannot be a reason to arrest me and send me to prison. Moreover, you have not answered my question just now."

Even if he finds a reason to find someone, he has to legislate first and then follow the law, which is far less elegant than this Qinzhou Biejia.

Zhou Ming twitched the corner of his mouth and said mockingly: "The laws of Daxia..., I think it's funny when you talk about the law. I am a state law cao, and I know the laws of Daxia by heart. Do you know the law?"

After saying that, he glanced at the old man standing next to Li Nuo and asked, "Are you his accomplice?"

The old fortune teller shook his head decisively, retreated into the crowd, and said, "No, I don't know him."

Seeing that this outspoken young man was framed as an imperial prisoner just because he spoke for those innocent girls, the people watching were angry but dared not speak out.

The other party is a state law cao, in charge of the laws of Qinzhou. If he can imprison this young man for this reason, he can also imprison them for other reasons. This is not the first time that the government has done this kind of thing. .

Zhou Ming glanced at Li Nuo, waved his hand simply, and said, "Take it away!"

Several government officials ran over, one took away the sword wrapped in a strip of cloth behind him, while the other two held his arms tightly.

"Be honest and avoid suffering!"

Seeing this young man with a sense of justice being taken away, the people watching sighed inwardly.

He is still too naive.

When the government is doing things, why do we need to explain to them what is right and wrong? Why don't we just let them say whatever they want?

"I'm afraid this young man is going to suffer a lot."

"If you dare to talk to Zhou Facao like that, I'm afraid you'll be imprisoned for at least three days."

"He must not be seen by the young lady from other families, otherwise, I'm afraid he will be tortured both physically and mentally..."

Qinzhou prison.

"Get in!"

A jailer opened the cell door and pushed Li Nuo in. There were several men in the same cell, and several young women in the opposite cell.

Daxia only separates prisons for men and women for prison sentences. If they are only detained for a few days, men and women are usually separated into different cells, and the private areas are simply separated by straw mats.

If you want to understand the local government, Dalao is the most suitable place.

As soon as the jailer left, a sturdy man in the same cell asked Li Nuo: "Brother, why did you come in?"

Li Nuo shrugged and said: "I was beating the drum of grievance outside the county government office and asked the law cao which law he used to arrest those girls and ban them from performing on the street. He arrested him..."

The man was stunned for a moment when he heard this, gave Li Nuo a thumbs up, and said in admiration: "I didn't expect that brother, seeing Wenwen as weak, would be so courageous, what a man he is."

Li Nuo asked: "What about you?"

The man sat down again, leaned against the wall of the cell, and said: "The government officials often eat for free in my shop. Two days ago, I asked them to collect debts. They said that I was bullying the market, so they fined me a sum of money and had to squat. Five days in jail..."

He looked at a handsome man in the corner and said, "I'm lucky, but this brother is miserable. Bie Jia's daughter asked him to stay with her, but he refused, so he was accused of molestation and was given a beating. If you still don't comply in two days, I'm afraid you will be sentenced to a more serious crime..."

In the cell opposite, several young women were holding on to the bars of the cell. They looked at Li Nuo apologetically and said, "I'm sorry, sir, it's us who have caused trouble for you..."

Li Nuo smiled and said: "It doesn't matter, I didn't do anything. I just asked two questions. They can't do anything to me. There is no law in Daxia. Asking questions is also a sin..."

…

Qinzhou Mansion Yamen, somewhere in the Yamen.

When Zhou Ming walked into the government office, an official asked: "Master Zhou, what happened?"

Zhou Ming waved his hand and said: "It's just a meddlesome person. It has been dealt with."

In his hand, he held something wrapped in a strip of cloth, which looked like a sword.

Returning to his position, he lifted the cloth strip at the hilt of the sword, and a golden light suddenly appeared in his eyes.

After completely untying the cloth strips, Zhou Ming looked stunned.

The scabbard and hilt of this sword are all golden, and it looks like it is made of gold. The man's road sign says that his family is in business. Could it be that he caught a fat sheep?

It is very common for them to receive some benefits from passing merchants.

But it was also the first time he encountered someone who was so extravagant that he used so much gold to make a scabbard.

Soon he narrowed his eyes.

The scabbard of this sword is not only made of gold, but is also engraved with a five-clawed golden dragon. This is something that only the royal family can use. To be precise, only His Majesty can use the five-clawed golden dragon.

No wonder he wrapped this sword.

6◇9◇Book◇Bar

To put it mildly, this is over the limit.

To put it more seriously, this is rebellion!

How dare he show up in the government office with this sword on his back?

He looked around and saw that no one was paying attention. He immediately wrapped the sword again, held it in his arms, and went to another government office.

In the yamen, a short and plump woman held Qinzhou Bieji's arm, shook it vigorously, and said: "Dad, those women are so hateful, can we sentence them to ten years in prison? I don't want to do it in the future." Seeing them..."

Qinzhou Biejia asked, "What did they do to you?"

The woman stamped her feet and said, "I just don't want to see them!"

Although they didn't offend her, every time she went out, she would feel upset when she saw them coquettishly and attracted countless compliments and rewards from men.

Qinzhou Biejia shook his head and said: "They haven't committed anything. It's enough to prevent them from performing on the streets in the future. Even though dad is from Yizhou Biejia, he can't do whatever he wants..."

The government office originally had no right to require others not to perform on the street.

Helping my daughter this time was just a small act of power.

If you do more, it will no longer be as simple as willfulness. The ten-year prison sentence is not something that the government can decide. It must be reported to the Ministry of Punishment. The Ministry of Punishment is not easy to fool. One mistake may lead to fire.

The family has just sent a message that Li Nuo, the minister of punishment, has left Chang'an as a supervisory censor and went to inspect the states. He is carrying Shang Fang's sword and has the power to kill first and then report. Even the governor of a state can deal with it on the spot. He must not do it at this juncture. Something went wrong.

At this time, he saw Fa Cao Zhou Ming walking in.

Zhou Ming was one of his confidants in the government office. Qinzhou Biejia pushed his daughter's hand away, looked at Zhou Ming, and asked, "What's the matter?"

Zhou Ming walked forward flatteringly, presented the sword as if it were a treasure, and said, "I just got a good thing, Lord Wang, take a look..."

He untied the cloth strips on the golden sword. When the short, round woman saw the sword, she was stunned for a moment and immediately said: "This sword is so beautiful, Dad, I want it!"

The moment the sword's cloth strips were lifted, Qinzhou's eyes twitched wildly.

When he saw the five-clawed golden dragon on the scabbard clearly, sweat began to ooze from his forehead. He held on to the table and barely managed to stand still. Holding the last glimmer of hope, he asked in a trembling voice: "This, this sword, you Where did it come from?"

Zhou Ming explained with a smile: "Just now, there was a man outside who was blaming his grievances and dared to question the official on which law he had arrested the women. The official found an excuse and put him in jail. This sword was found from him. This man is so bold that he dares to make a five-claw golden dragon sword... Sir, Sir, what's wrong with you? Come on, Mr. Wang has fainted, go and call the doctor!"

…

Within the prison.

Li Nuo was chatting with the inmates.

"That year, my younger brother fell ill, and my parents sold the land and house, and also sold me to an official's family as a maid. However, on the first day I went to the master's house, the government confiscated my house because of corruption. , we maids and servants have also been dismissed and need to make a living on our own..."

"I didn't dare to go back because I was afraid that my parents would betray me a second time. At first I was begging outside, and then I joined a juggling troupe and learned some sword-swallowing and somersault skills. After the juggling troupe disbanded, I worked with a few little sisters on my own. Performing on the streets..."

"We don't know how we offended Master Biejia's lady. We were arrested just as we were setting up a stall in the morning. The master also said that we won't be allowed to perform on the streets in the future..."

The man continued: "Actually, it's pretty good compared to before. At least medical treatment is not that expensive. I heard that after next year, Qinzhou will be like Chang'an. Ordinary people won't even have to pay local taxes..."

"You are young. If it had been in the past, there would not have been a month without carrying out a few corpses from this prison. Now that the court has strict inspections, they don't dare to do this."

"In general, there is still hope for the future..."

While everyone was discussing, there was suddenly a burst of chaotic footsteps in the cell.

Soon, figures appeared in front of the cell door. With everyone shocked and at a loss, the jailer opened the cell door tremblingly. A middle-aged man in official uniform, holding a golden sword in both hands, walked out. Entering the cell, he came to the young man, bowed down, and said respectfully: "Farewell, Qinzhou, I have met Mr. Li!"

Li Nuo took back Shang Fang's sword and did not respond to Qinzhou's farewell. Instead, he looked at Fa Cao behind him and asked: "My lord, you haven't answered my question just now. You have captured these girls." , which law is the basis for not allowing them to make a living by performing arts? "

Zhou Ming stood behind Qinzhou Biejia, his body shaking uncontrollably.

The same question has completely different meanings when asked by an unknown person and by the patrolling censor holding Shang Fang's sword.

He opened his mouth, but didn't know how to answer. Sweat was pouring from his forehead. Finally, he gritted his teeth, pointed at Qinzhou Biejia, and said, "Master Biejia asked me to do this. I am unjustly accused!"

Qinzhou Biejia was furious and said sternly: "That's nonsense, you are so brave, you dare to wrongly accuse me!"

Li Nuo looked at Qinzhou and said, "Don't get angry before you go. I have another question for you. I heard that you opened a brothel in Qinzhou City. Is there anything like this?"

Now it's Qinzhou's turn to stop sweating on his forehead.

The imperial court explicitly prohibits officials from having sex with prostitutes, but even if they are caught, they will only be fined and punished. However, officials who run brothels must be severely investigated. Even if the brothel is not under his name, if they get deeper into it, it will definitely be difficult for him to get rid of it. relation……

…

At the entrance of the Qinzhou government office, more and more people gathered here, looking inside.

Just now, a big event happened in the government office.

This morning, the government arrested several girls performing on the streets and banned them from continuing to perform in the future.

A young man was also imprisoned by Zhou Facao just because he helped them fight against the injustice.

But according to the two prisoners released from the prison, Zhou Facao and Biejia had made a big mistake this time.

The young man who was imprisoned was actually the imperial censor.

Farewell to Qinzhou, the second most powerful official in Qinzhou could only bow his knees and bow his head when meeting him.

Just now, Zhou Facao was arrested on the spot for abusing his power.

Even Master Biejia is under investigation.

The governor of Qinzhou, who was resting at home today, learned about this and didn't care about resting. He hurried back to the government office to receive him.

The people were full of expectations for the further development of the incident. Although this was not the first time that the inspector came to Qinzhou, he was the first inspector to investigate officials of the level of Beijia.

They were all looking forward to the further development of this matter.

Unlike the expectations of the people, the local officials of Qinzhou were full of panic after hearing the news.

Inspector, the sword of the imperial court.

Just hearing these words made people tremble with fear.

For those officials who already had something to hide, there was only one thought in their minds at this moment.

The sky was about to fall.